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First meeting of York People’s Assembly held

Last Wednesday saw the first large Peoples Assembly meeting in York. The event aroused such interest that it filled the room to over capacity. After brief introductions it was clear that this event was unlike any other occurring amongst the British political left. Amongst the large group of people were political activists, ranging from the Labour and Green parties to people with no political affiliations and students. There was a clear consensus that people had attended for a coherent alternative voice to the austerity policies being dished out by the Government.

The meeting began with a recap from people who were able to attend the national Peoples Assembly in June. Despite some attempts to label the event a ‘talking shop’ the majority view was that the PA was fresh, coherent and inspiring. It became very apparent from the people feeding back from the assembly that this movement was going to be a considerably different response, not only in terms of campaigning, but in terms of organisation and structure. This point was further highlighted in the next part of the meeting where the room was separated into 7 different groups and each group was tasked with coming up with three points that the York assembly should aim for. The points raised were intelligent, creative and heartfelt. It revealed the desire for an assembly that was connected to the movement as a whole.

After discussion the groups decided that we would organise another meeting towards the end of the month, organise coaches to the Conservative Party conference in September, and prepare a larger Peoples Assembly based on the London model in York in October, which will lay the basis for the mass protests we can launch on November 5. The recall PA conference in early 2014 will have plenty of input from York delegates.